TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS (P3M-2) Type: Five- place patrol flying boat.
Total produced: 10 (USN)
Powerplants: Two 525-hp Pratt & Whitney R-1690-32
Martin P3M-2
Left: One-of-a-kind XP2M-1 as seen at NAS Anacostia in mid–1931. Because of the additional weight and drag, the third engine (as
with the XPY-1) was deemed impractical. Right: One of nine Hornet-powered P3M-2s. The first three P3M-1s were underpowered with two Wasp engines, while the remaining six came with 525-hp Hornets as P3M-2s.
Hornet 9-cylinder air- cooled radial engines driving three- bladed, ground- adjustable metal propellers. Armament: One flexible .30-caliber machine gun in the bow
and one flexible .30-caliber machine gun in the rear cockpit (no bomb load listed).
Performance: Max. speed 115 mph, cruise 100 mph; ceiling 11,900 ft.; range 1,570 mi. max.
Weights: 10,032 lbs. empty, 17,977 lbs. loaded.
Dimensions: Span 100 ft., length 61 ft. 9 in., wing area 1,119 sq. ft.
As direct developments of the Consolidated XPY- 1of 1929 (see above), the P2M and P3M were both byproducts of a naval aircraft procurement system which permitted one manufacturer’s design to be pro- duced by an altogether different company according to a competitive bidding process. In this case, Martin un- derbid Consolidated, receiving two contracts in June 1929 to build one development aircraft as the XP2M-1 plus nine others as the P3M-1. With the XP2M-1, Martin was given considerable leeway in making certain engi- neering changes, while the XP3M-1s were to be exact copies of the XPY-1, including its original two- engine layout. The first of three P3M-1s, powered by 450-hp R-1340 Wasp engines and having an open cockpit, was delivered in January 1931; however, when overall per- formance fell substantially below expectations, BuAer directed Martin to complete the six remaining aircraft to a revised specification under the designation P3M-2 and modify the three P3M-1s to the same standard. The upgrade included installation of 525-hp Hornet engines encased in ring cowlings, plus fully enclosed cockpits. But even after trials with the new engines, the P3M’s performance was still substandard, causing them to be replaced in frontline service within a year and reas- signed to NAS Pensacola as trainers, and three remained on the naval inventory as of December 1941. The one- of- a- kind XP2M-1 was rolled- out for its first flight in June 1931. It differed from the P3Ms in having three 575-hp Cyclone en gines, two mounted directly to the wings in nacelles and a third on top. The wing itself was positioned lower in relation to the fuselage. Shortly after the XP2M-1 commenced flight trials, Navy officials determined that the extra weight and drag of the third en- gine effectively offset any advantage in speed and climb, and ordered it removed. However, by the time the aircraft resumed testing later in the year as the XP2M-2, the Navy had decided to award Consolidated a construction contract for the very similar P2Y-1. The wing- mounted nacelle arrangement was later adopted on the P2Y-3.
Sikorsky P2S—1932
TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS (XP2S-1) Type: Three- place patrol flying boat.
Manufacturer: Sikorsky Aviation Div. of United Aircraft Corp., Bridgeport, Connecticut.
Sikorsky XP2S-1
The sole prototype of XP2S-1, delivered to NAS Anacostia in June 1932. After a year of trials, the Navy decided not to pursue the small patrol boat concept and cancelled development.
Total produced: 1 (USN)
Powerplants: Two 450-hp Pratt & Whitney R-1340-88 Wasp 9- cylinder air- cooled radial engines driving two- bladed, ground- adjustable metal propellers.
Armament: One flexible .30-caliber machine gun the bow, one flexible .30-caliber machine gun the rear cockpit, and up to 1,000 lbs. of bombs carried under the wings.
Performance: Max. speed 124 mph; ceiling 13,900 ft.; range (not reported).
Weights: 6,040 lbs. empty, 9,745 lbs. loaded.
Dimensions: Span 56 ft., length 44 ft. 2 in., wing area 762 sq. ft. After selling the XPS-1 and four PS-2s to the Navy between 1927 and 1929, Sikorsky endeavored to interest BuAer in a pure flying boat patrol type that looked more like scaled- down PN-12 instead of the company’s usual am- phibian designs. Sikorsky received a development contract in mid–1930 to build one prototype as the XP2S-1, but did not deliver a completed aircraft to NAS Anacostia, Mary- land for testing until June of 1932, nearly two years later. Using an all- metal hull similar in shape to that of the Hall PH-1, the XP2S-1 appeared as a two- bay, equal- span biplane with its two Wasp engines mounted in a tandem configu- ration. Overall performance was on a par with the larger biplane patrol boats of that era, though its range was not revealed. After approximately one year of official trials, the Navy cancelled the project.
Hall P2H—1932
TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS (XP2H-1) Type: Six- place patrol flying boat.
Manufacturer: Hall Aluminum Aircraft Corp., Buf- falo, New York.
Total produced: 1 (USN)
Powerplants: Four 600-hp Curtiss V-1670-54 Con- queror 12-cylinder water- cooled inline engines driving three- bladed, ground- adjustable metal propellers.
Armament: Five flexible .30-caliber machine guns in bow, waist, and tail positions and up to 2,000 lbs. of bombs or depth charges carried under the wings.
Performance: max. speed 139 mph, cruise 120 mph; ceiling 10,900 ft.; range 3,350 mi. max. Weights: 20,856 lbs. empty, 43,193 lbs. loaded. Dimensions: span 112 ft., length 70 ft. 10 in., wing
area 2,742 sq. ft.
The largest Navy flying boat to be built since the Curtiss NC-4, the Hall P2H repre- sented an experimental effort to enlarge both the range and offensive capabilities of a naval patrol flying boat. Notably, it became the last biplane patrol type to be completed to a Navy specification and the first to feature tail gun
armament. When ordered in June 1930 as the XP2H-1, BuAer departed from standard practice by specifying water- cooled Curtiss engines, apparently due to the inherent problem of cool- ing rear- mounted radial engines in a tandem arrangement. Hall
evolved a design in which the dimensions of the PH-1 were in- creased by a factor of approximately fifty percent, yielding over twice the wing area and interior hull volume. The four engines, mounted at the lower wing roots, sat on wide, raised pylons Massing over twice the weight of the PH, the XP2H-1 was built to evaluate long- range patrol missions. By the time trials were concluded in 1933, BuAer had decided to pursue monoplane designs instead.
that also contained the radiators. The XP2H-1 was flown for the first time on November 15, 1932, and was accepted by the Navy soon after- ward. By mid–1933, however, BuAer had reached a decision to concentrate instead on more modern monoplane designs like the Con- solidated XP3Y-1 and Douglas XP3D-1, and as a consequence, development of the XP2H-1 was discontinued.
Consolidated P2Y—1932
TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS (P2Y-3) Type: Five- place patrol flying boat.
Manufacturer: Consolidated Aircraft Corp., Buffalo, New York.
Total produced: 47 (USN)
Powerplants: Two 750-hp Wright R-1820-90 Cyclone 9-cylinder air- cooled radial engines driving three- bladed, ground- adjustable metal pro- pellers.
Armament: One flexible .30-caliber machine gun in the bow, two flexible .30-caliber machine guns in the waist positions, and up to 2,000 lbs. of bombs carried on underwing racks.
Performance: Max. speed 139 mph, cruise 117 mph; ceiling 16,100 ft.; range 2,050 mi. max. Weights: 12,769 lbs. empty, 21,291 lbs., 25,266 lbs.
loaded.
Dimensions: Span 100 ft., length 61 ft. 9 in., wing area 1,514 sq. ft.
In May 1931 BuAer gave Consolidated a de- velopment contract for the XP2Y-1, a redesign of the XPY-1 which involved the addition of sesquiplane wings to the upper hull. The sequis -
Consolidated P2Y-2
Left: A P2Y-1 serving with VP-10 over Norfolk, Virginia, in late 1933. The lower sesquiplane wing not only provided extra lift but
also added space for fuel tankage and weapons storage. Right: One of 23 P2Y-3s, seen in 1935. Twenty-one P2Y-1s were subsequently modified to incorporate the P2Y-3 improvements and returned to service as P2Y-2s. Used as trainers during World War II.
plane layout, adding 404 square feet of wing area, not only reduced wing loading and improved payload but also supplied additional space for fuel storage and bomb racks. Other enhancements included a fully enclosed cockpit and more power ful R-1820 engines equipped with ring cowlings. In June 1931, after reviewing competitive pro- posals, BuAer awarded Consolidated a contract to produce a further twenty- three examples as the P2Y-1, with deliv- eries scheduled to start in early 1933. The XP2Y-1 made its first flight on March 26, 1932, in the three- engine configuration originally specified, but following two months of trials, the third engine was removed, and a two- engine layout was adopted as the production standard.
The first production P2Y-1s began entering service with VP-10 at Naval Air Station Norfolk, Virginia in Feb- ruary 1933, and by the end of the year were also equipping VP-5 in the Panama Canal Zone. Demonstrating the ca- pabilities of their new aircraft, these two units made some notable long- distance flights: non- stop from Norfolk to Coco Solo, Canal Zone in late 1933; then non- stop from San Francisco to Pearl Harbor in mid–1934. The last P2Y- 1on the production line became the XP2Y-2 in August 1933 when modified to have its engines re- mounted on the upper wing in nacelles, together with full- chord engine cowlings having moveable cowl- flaps. In December 1933, following trials of the XP2Y-2, Consolidated received a contract to manufacture twenty- three more aircraft to be delivered as the P2Y-3. San Diego–based VP-7 received its first P2Y-3 in January 1935, and all had been delivered to Navy units by the end of May. Starting in 1936, at least twenty- one P2Y-1s underwent modifications that brought them up to the P2Y-3 standard and were thereafter returned to service as the P2Y-2. While on active service, P2Y-1s, -2s and -3s also served at various times with VP- 4, VP-14, VP-15, VP-19, VP-20, and VP-21. The Navy began the process of replacing P2Ys with new PBYs in frontline units during the late 1930s, but many continued afterward in service at NAS Pensacola as flying boat trainers, and 41 were still on hand in December 1941.